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Dad & Daughter ran for Malawi

Against the backdrop of the horrendous effects of Cyclone Freddy in Southern Malawi and a drought in the North, it has been great to see the positivity around Hannah and Phil Wright running in the Manchester Marathon today. What a great good-news story. They completed the 42 kms (26.2 miles) in 3 hours and 57 minutes. How amazing is that?. Phil and Hannah have been running together for 10 years but this was their first marathon. Hannah explains:

“I started doing cross country at primary school in Malawi. Dad used to run the cross country club at our school and we ran around the botanical gardens in Zomba together. Dodging the baboons! This is our first race together and will be a massive challenge. We enjoy running as it is a way to spend time together and stay fit.”

Hannah and Phil have already raised enough money to send a Malawian girl to school for three of the four years of secondary school. They are overwhelmed by this generous support of family and friends. They are well on the way to making it a full four years of funding.

Getting the tram to the start
Cocky at 2 miles in
Cheery at 6 miles in
Determined at 12 miles in
Tired at 20 miles
Thrilled to finish

The engagement on social media today was lovely. Friends from far and wide posted encouragment and made donations. Old friends rediscovered each other too. Almost all the donations of the £1k already raised came in small amounts – £5, £10, £20. Never think that your donation is too small to make a difference. It is the only thing that does – to paraphrase Margaret Mead.

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Michelle kiltwalked a marathon

The Kiltwalk went virtual again this Spring. People could choose their own challenge and complete it over the weekend 23 – 25 April. Michelle only learned about the Kiltwalk the week before. When she had checked that she had not misheard (‘so you wear some tartan and walk?’), she went for it, aiming to walk 20 miles around Edinburgh on Saturday 24th. She plotted a route which included Arthur’s Seat, Water of Leith and Cramond and set off from Newhaven.

Her preparation including buying some tartan; if she was to be a kiltwalker, there had to be tartan. She excelled herself in a few days, with tartan leggings and a skirt. Teamed up with an MMF tee-shirt and some Malawi-Scotland chitenjie, she was the picture of a true kiltwalker.

Supported by her sister Heidi and Moira from MMF, both on bikes, Michelle set a pace of 18 minutes a mile and she held that pace all day. We had a few rest and food stops and the occasional ‘tourist’ stop. The team met some other kiltwalkers but not as many as expected.

It was a lovely sunny day but there was a vicious North-Easterly wind which felt hard walking by the sea from Cramond to Granton. However, at Granton, hot tea and home baking was provided by an MMF friend and Michelle turned to the last few miles with renewed energy. It was after the home baking that she decided to go for the full marathon distance of 26.2 miles and she completed 26.3 miles on Newhaven pier as the sun went down. What an achievement!

In the meantime friends and family donated to her fund-raising page. All donations will be topped up by 50% this year by the Tom Hunter Foundation, so Michelle is, at the time of writing, well on the way to raising enough money to support two girls at boarding school in Malawi for a whole year. Double-achievement. Thanks Michelle!